Cherry Book Awards has announced distinguished recipients for Phase Three of the Sahitya Ratna Samman Award 2026, bringing together authors, poets and professionals whose work reflects different dimensions of contemporary literary and intellectual expression.
- Trina Kanungo: Best Innovative Author
- Dr. Atul Malikram: Most Impactful Author
- Gevita WP Venugopal: Most Impactful Professional
- Dr. S. Vishnupriya: Excellence in Poetry
- Jenney Clark: Best Non Fiction Author, Memoir
- L. N. Holani: Best Non Fiction Author
- Sahitya Ratna Samman 2026 Continues Its Literary Journey
The Phase Three cohort features Trina Kanungo, Dr. Atul Malikram, Gevita WP Venugopal, Dr. S. Vishnupriya, Tamoghna Dey, Jenney Clark and L. N. Holani, with recognitions spanning innovative writing, professional impact, poetry and non fiction.
The announcement forms the third phase of the Sahitya Ratna Samman Award 2026. The winners of the first phase were featured in The Inscriber Mag, while the second phase recipients were published in Republic News India. The seven Phase Three honourees now receive their dedicated literary spotlight through Cynx Magazines, reflecting the continuing national and international visibility being created around this year’s award.
Trina Kanungo: Best Innovative Author
Trina Kanungo has been recognised in the category of Best Innovative Author for her distinctive approach to literature and her multidimensional creative journey. An author, mathematician, fine arts enthusiast and banking professional, Kanungo brings together academic discipline and creative expression in an unusual literary profile. She has contributed to more than twenty anthologies in English and Bengali and has received recognition across literary, artistic and cultural platforms. Her wider interests include Indian fine arts, painting, art and craft, yoga and the promotion of Bengali literature. Her academic background includes postgraduate study in Mathematics and Computing from IIT ISM Dhanbad, while her professional career has taken her into banking. Her combination of literature, mathematics, visual arts and cultural engagement provides the foundation for her recognition as Best Innovative Author.
Dr. Atul Malikram: Most Impactful Author
Dr. Atul Malikram has been selected for the Most Impactful Author category, recognising the significance of his literary and intellectual contribution. His recognition reflects the broader role that contemporary authors can play in taking ideas beyond the boundaries of conventional literature and engaging readers with subjects that have relevance to society and everyday life. Through his work as an author and public voice, Dr. Malikram represents a literary approach centred on ideas, communication and meaningful engagement. His selection places him among the Phase Three recipients whose work has been recognised for its wider impact and contribution to contemporary literary discourse.
Gevita WP Venugopal: Most Impactful Professional
Gevita WP Venugopal has received the Most Impactful Professional honour for her contribution across education, communication and professional development. Based in Kuala Lumpur, Gevita WP Venugopal is an educator, language professional, translator, mentor and facilitator with experience in English and Bahasa Melayu education. Her work focuses on communication skills, student development, personal growth and learning. Her professional journey also extends into cultural, environmental, academic and community initiatives. The recognition reflects a career in which communication and education intersect with a broader commitment to learning and personal development.
Dr. S. Vishnupriya: Excellence in Poetry
Dr. S. Vishnupriya has been honoured in the category of Excellence in Poetry, recognising her contribution to poetic expression and contemporary literature. A leading educator in Abu Dhabi, her anthology The Voices Of Ryanites: Celebrating The UAE is a global phenomenon already. Her selection represents the continuing importance of poetry within the Sahitya Ratna Samman 2026, with the award acknowledging writers who contribute to the literary form through their creative voice and engagement with language. Dr. Vishnupriya’s recognition adds another dimension to Phase Three, where poetry stands alongside authorship, professional contribution and non fiction as part of the broader contemporary literary landscape.
Tamoghna Dey: Excellence in Poetry
Tamoghna Dey, a poet and author from Dhubri, Assam, has been selected for Excellence in Poetry for his literary works From My Heart… and Nothing But Something. Both books were published by BookLeaf Publishing and represent an important part of Dey’s continuing engagement with poetry. His literary journey also includes recognition through the India Book of Records, five Most Popular Article Awards from Monomousumi, publication of short stories in Friday Flash Fiction and Synchronous Chaos Magazine, and publication of a poem through the Poetry Nation Contest. His book From My Heart… has also been associated with the 21st Century Emily Dickinson Award. The Sahitya Ratna Samman recognition adds another chapter to a growing record of literary participation across poetry and short fiction.
Jenney Clark: Best Non Fiction Author, Memoir
Jenney Clark has been recognised as Best Non Fiction Author, Memoir for her outstanding literary body of work and contribution to contemporary literature. The Hyderabad based author, researcher, podcast host and esoteric scholar has published nine books exploring subjects including ancient cosmology, spirituality, mythology, relationships, numerology, personal transformation and human experience. Her literary work includes Cryptid: Falling into Time, Magic of the Ancients, Don’t Be Afraid To Love, A Lightworker’s Map To The Galaxy and several other titles. She also hosts the Awakened Souls podcast, which features conversations around resilience, ancient history, spirituality and human experience. Her Sahitya Ratna Samman recognition acknowledges her distinctive body of work and literary engagement.
L. N. Holani: Best Non Fiction Author
L. N. Holani, an author and Well being and Happiness Coach, has been selected as Best Non Fiction Author for his book The Science of Inner Joy (अन्तरानन्दविज्ञानम् ) and his wider contribution to well being and conscious happiness. The book brings together ideas drawn from Indian philosophical traditions including the Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita and Yoga Sutras with contemporary perspectives from psychology, neuroscience and positive psychology. Holani’s work focuses on inner peace, self awareness, emotional well being and meaningful living, extending beyond literature into workshops, educational programmes and personal development initiatives.
A Diverse Third Phase of Literary Recognition
The seven Phase Three recipients demonstrate the breadth of contemporary literary recognition. Their fields range from innovative authorship and professional contribution to poetry, memoir and non fiction, bringing together individuals whose work approaches literature and knowledge from very different directions.
What connects the recipients is not a single literary style or subject, but a sustained engagement with ideas, creativity, communication and human experience. From Trina Kanungo’s intersection of mathematics, literature and the arts to Tamoghna Dey’s poetic voice from Assam, from Gevita WP Venugopal’s work in education and communication to Jenney Clark’s exploration of memoir and esoteric thought, the group reflects the varied forms that contemporary literary contribution can take.
The recognition of Dr. Atul Malikram, Dr. S. Vishnupriya and L. N. Holani further expands that spectrum, representing literary impact, poetry and non fiction rooted in contemporary questions of human life and society.
Sahitya Ratna Samman 2026 Continues Its Literary Journey
With its third phase, the Sahitya Ratna Samman Award 2026 continues to bring attention to writers and professionals working across diverse areas of contemporary literary and intellectual expression. The publication of the first phase winners in The Inscriber Mag, followed by the second phase in Republic News India, and now the third phase in Cynx Magazines, creates a continuing record of this year’s recipients across different media platforms.
For the Phase Three honourees, the recognition represents another published chapter in their individual journeys. Their work comes from different backgrounds, disciplines and literary traditions, yet each has contributed to the wider conversation around writing, ideas and creative expression.
As Phase Three of the Sahitya Ratna Samman Award 2026 takes its place in the literary record, the stories of Trina Kanungo, Dr. Atul Malikram, Gevita WP Venugopal, Dr. S. Vishnupriya, Tamoghna Dey, Jenney Clark and L. N. Holani offers different perspectives on what it means to create, write, communicate and contribute to contemporary literature.
